ECU educator, coastal advocate Dr. Don Ensley died Friday

Community health educator, community activist and environmental advocate Dr. Donald E. Ensley of Greenville died Friday, March 28, 2025.

Born and reared in rural Belhaven, Ensley was one of East Carolina University’s first African American faculty in the health sciences, and the first president of the North Carolina Coastal Federation, founded in 1982 by Todd Miller.

In a commentary honoring Ensley published earlier this month in Coastal Review, Miller wrote that Ensley was in hospice care, “preparing to leave behind a legacy that will forever shape the places and people he touched.”

Ensley earned his bachelor’s in geography and health education from North Carolina Central University, a master’s and doctorate from Michigan State University, and a master of public health from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.

Ensley joined ECU’s faculty in 1977 as an associate professor in the School of Allied Health and Social Professions’ Department of Community Health, eventually becoming chair of the department.

During his time at ECU, Ensley acted as assistant vice chancellor for community engagement, and director of the department’s graduate studies program in the School of Allied Health Sciences, according to the university. He retired in 2011.

In addition to the Coastal Federation, Ensley held leadership roles on the North Carolina Humanities Council, North Carolina Heart Disease and Stroke Task Force, and North Carolina Heart Association.

The Coastal Federation publishes Coastal Review.